From Femi Oyelola, Kaduna
The singer and Director-General, Women Development Centre, Ms. Onyeka Onwenu, has said the abduction of the 200 female students in Chibok by the Boko Haram insurgents in Borno state, is the last straw that will bring an end to Boko Haram menace.
Onwenu, who disclosed this while speaking at the annual conference of Rotary International Club District 9125 held in Kaduna yesterday, said because the group has generated negative attention, both internal and external, and has called everybody to a sense of duty in finding a solution to the menace.
According to her, there is no hiding place for the insurgents in and outside the country, because eagle eyes are watching.
“I was speaking in Abuja yesterday, at the World Economic Forum for Africa (WEFA); I told my audience that it is good that Boko Haram went to this extent, because if God wants to punish anybody, he will first allow the person to go mad without reason. For long, the Boko Haram has laid siege on our female children, but we have tolerated them for long because it is just one or two students are involved. But this time around they went too far.
“Today, we are living in a global world and this madness by the Boko Haram group has attracted international communities, who are calling on Nigeria to act now. Where we fail to act, other foreign countries are ready to act; so, I can see the end of Boko Haram coming sooner than we expect,” she stated.
Meanwhile, Kaduna state government has indicated interest to partner the Australian government in the mining sector with a target of exploiting its rich potentials in solid mineral deposits in the state.
The state governor, Mukhtar Ramalan Yero, expressed the indication yesterday, when the Australian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Jon Richardson, paid him a courtesy call at Government House, saying his administration has already concluded plans to diversify its revenue base through the mining sector.
He said, “We have gone far in our efforts at analyzing the minerals to know those that are in commercial quantities before we can partner with others in mining. Kaduna is endowed with solid mineral resources; our challenge is how to tap and take advantage of the sector.”
Governor Yero asked for the assistance of Australia, which is a global leader in mining to assist the State through encouraging investors to take advantage of the numerous solid minerals available in the state.
“We will soon visit your office so that we can work out a way of getting partners to develop our mining sector, since we are going to have a limited liability company.”
